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YOU are here : Home > Spinecare Topics > Options for Spine Treatments > Benefits and Risks of Back Surgery
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Options for Spine Treatments
Benefits and Risks of Back Surgery
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Benefits and Risks of Back Surgery
A respiratory therapist may be asked to participate in your recovery process. The respiratory therapist has several tools to help facilitate and record lung function. The incentive spirometer is a small device that measures how hard one is able to breath out. The recordings provide as basis for evaluating post-operative recovery. The findings can also be used to motivate the patient to participate. The respiratory therapist may be authorized to use medications during breathing treatments to help open air pockets within the lungs.
Infection
Infection is a potential risk of all surgical procedures. Infections occur in less than 1% of spinal surgeries. An infection can occur at the surgical site or distant from the surgical site. The most common cause for developing an infection distant from the surgical site is pulmonary infection secondary to limited breathing (hypoventilation). Less common causes of infection distant to the surgical site include seeding of an organism(s) in another area of the body or spine secondary to spread through the blood (septicemia) or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
Infection at the surgical site can be classified as superficial, deep or combined. A superficial infection may occur only at the incision site although it can progress to involve deeper areas. An infection can develop within the spine including the area around the spinal nerve (neuritis), spinal cord (myelitis), in the disc (discitis) and within the bone (osteomyelitis). A superficial infection is generally less serious and easier to treat than a deeper infection. Spinal surgeons take many precautions in an attempt to prevent infections. Surgical patients are often given antibiotics before surgery especially if the surgery is going to be complicated and require placement of a bone graft or instrumentation such as metal screws, rods or plates. The longer the duration of surgery, the greater the risk for infection. The more foreign substances that are introduced into the spine the greater the risk for infection. The longer the spine surgery, the greater the risk for infection.
If the surgical incision site becomes swollen, red, or warm it may be infected. An infected incision site may not close up. There may be weeping from the wound. A focal region of swelling and pain may develop secondary to an abscess. Superficial wound infections can usually be treated successfully with oral antibiotics. Sometimes the stitches have to be removed early. Deeper post-operative wound infections can be very serious and sometimes require one or more additional operations to drain the infection and to clean out the infected area. Occasionally, bone grafts and/or instrumentation may have to be removed from the surgical site.
Contact your doctor immediately if you suspect that you have a post-operative infection. Some indications of infection include
Infection
Infection is a potential risk of all surgical procedures. Infections occur in less than 1% of spinal surgeries. An infection can occur at the surgical site or distant from the surgical site. The most common cause for developing an infection distant from the surgical site is pulmonary infection secondary to limited breathing (hypoventilation). Less common causes of infection distant to the surgical site include seeding of an organism(s) in another area of the body or spine secondary to spread through the blood (septicemia) or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
Infection at the surgical site can be classified as superficial, deep or combined. A superficial infection may occur only at the incision site although it can progress to involve deeper areas. An infection can develop within the spine including the area around the spinal nerve (neuritis), spinal cord (myelitis), in the disc (discitis) and within the bone (osteomyelitis). A superficial infection is generally less serious and easier to treat than a deeper infection. Spinal surgeons take many precautions in an attempt to prevent infections. Surgical patients are often given antibiotics before surgery especially if the surgery is going to be complicated and require placement of a bone graft or instrumentation such as metal screws, rods or plates. The longer the duration of surgery, the greater the risk for infection. The more foreign substances that are introduced into the spine the greater the risk for infection. The longer the spine surgery, the greater the risk for infection.
If the surgical incision site becomes swollen, red, or warm it may be infected. An infected incision site may not close up. There may be weeping from the wound. A focal region of swelling and pain may develop secondary to an abscess. Superficial wound infections can usually be treated successfully with oral antibiotics. Sometimes the stitches have to be removed early. Deeper post-operative wound infections can be very serious and sometimes require one or more additional operations to drain the infection and to clean out the infected area. Occasionally, bone grafts and/or instrumentation may have to be removed from the surgical site.
Contact your doctor immediately if you suspect that you have a post-operative infection. Some indications of infection include
- Swelling over the surgical site
- Surgical incision that does not heal
- Fever and chills
- Clear liquid or yellow pus coming from the surgical incision site
- Wound drainage that smells bad
- Increasing pain
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